Height: 6-1
Weight: 190
Shoot: L
Born: 9 Oct 1941, Summerland BC
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Regular Season & Playoff Scoring Record (key)
| year | team | |||||||||||
| 1972-73 | Houston | |||||||||||
| 1973-74 | Houston | |||||||||||
| 1974-75 | Houston | |||||||||||
| 1975-76 | Houston | |||||||||||
| 1976-77 | Houston | |||||||||||
| 1977-78 | Houston | |||||||||||
| Totals: |
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Aeros Hale Looks For Bad Angles • by Rich Burk • The Hockey Spectator • November 10, 1972
To play good defense, you have to have an angle. Preferably a bad one, according to Houston Aeros defenseman Larry Hale. The idea on defense is to force a shot from a bad angle. Take the shooter to the boards and keep him away from the middle. Don't let anybody get a shot from the slot or it might be a goal. "What the goalie wants you to do is force him (the opposing player) to shoot from a bad angle. Then he can skate out and cut down the angle even more. "You should never let a guy shoot from the middle lane. The closer he is to the middle the better the angle for him, Those are the kind of shots that set up rebounds, too," Hale said. "I'll use my reach to force the man wide. When he gets closer, then I'll try to angle him off." In theory this should cut down the number of goals scored. In practice it doesn't always work out that way, however, as the Aeros know. Shots from the slot, that area just in front of the net about 15-20 feet out, have kept the Aeros in hot water in the early part of the World Hockey Association season. Inability to control the man in the slot has cost Houston several key goals — and wins. Hale figures all those goals can't be blamed on Houston goalies Wayne Rutledge and Don McLeod or the Aeros defense. A mistake up ice, seldom noticed by the fans, can be just as costly as a defenseman getting trapped and setting up a three-on-one break. "You have to play both ways. If the defense doesn't bring the puck up quickly it slows the offense. If the forwards don't backcheck it can hurt the defense. When there's a goal you really can't blame anybody. Usually it's a number of mistakes that set up a goal." Trying to explain defense to the uninitiated, Hale alluded to a more familiar sport. Playing defense is like playing linebacker in football. The defenseman has to read the play as it develops and react accordingly. "We try to size up the situation while we're coming down. That's why we skate backwards, so we can face the play and 'read' it," Hale said. "You have to have mental toughness to play defense, too. You have to have a lot more concentration." The 31-year-old veteran, who logged almost four seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League before coming to Houston, began playing hockey at an early age, just like everybody else in Canada. He started out as a wing, but gradually drifted into the defenseman role. "I played defense in basketball and soccer and I've always liked to play defense. In hockey, though, it's good to play all positions. That way you get an idea of what problems the other fellow has. When most kids start out, if they can't shoot they put them on defense, That's a mistake. They should be able to play everywhere," Hale said. Even goalie? "No, not goalie. I don't know why anybody would want to play that position," he laughed. There have been some changes in the defenseman's role in the last few years, Hale said. Thanks to Bobby Orr, the Boston Bruins' star, there's not the absence of glamour there once was. "Orr made defense more attractive. Now defensemen bring the puck up ice more and they're more a part of the offense. They can score goals and get more assists now," he said. "With only five or six defensemen on a team, you can also get on the ice more. You don't have to wait as long as the forwards to get out there." Right now the Aeros — and the league — are going through a settling period, Hale said. Teams and players are getting a feeling for the opposition, so there is still some uncertainty. "Some of the players we've never seen before, so we're still trying to get a book on them. What kind of moves does a player have, what kind of speed, does he shoot high or low. After one time around, I guarantee some of these guys we'll watch a lot closer next time," he said. Though the Aeros have had their problems in the early going, Hale isn't discouraged. One of the reasons he joined the WHA was the parity which is slowly becoming more apparent. "Everybody here is equal. With the new expansion teams, there is none in the NHL. Here everybody has a chance to win, so there's more excitement," he said. Pragmatically Hale now has a chance to pick up some extra money should the Aeros make the far-distant playoffs. As a draftee of the NHL Atlanta Flames he stood little chance of ever picking up any postseason money. With the league still in a state of flux, it's hard to say which teams will make the playoffs. Hale thinks his team has a good shot at them, though. "We've got a well-balanced team and there's a certain amount of communication going on between the players, an understanding of each other. The way we're playing right now is no indication of our real talent. What we're looking for is to be consistent and to have a good mixture," he said. Larry has no goals for himself. He tries to take care of each shift and let things overall take care of themselves. "I try to make every shift a good one, with no mistakes. If you try to think too far ahead you can be out of it before you know it. A brief letdown can hurt the whole team," he said. And Larry Hale is a team man. |
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Excerpts from Pro Hockey, WHA 1975-76 (by Dan Proudfoot)
Back when the Philadelphia Flyers were known as little more than pushovers, just before Freddy Shero took over and coached the team to prominence, Larry Hale was one of its staff of anonymous defencemen. Flyers' defensive record was respected, but because the team lacked the scoring punch to be a winner, nobody really became well known. Hale typified the situation. Big, strong, but not hyper-agressive in the more recent Flyer style, he went unnoticed and ended up in the minors. Until, that is Aero Manager Dineen arranged to get him. "Hale is successful because of his intelligence," he says. "He can't shoot or skate; but the way he thinks out there enables him to block shots and cut angles effectively. To me, he's proof you don't need all the gifts to be a big asset." |
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Excerpts from Zander Hollander Complete Hockey Handbook, 1975-76 (by Reyn Davis) Quietly goes about his business ... Unspectacular but extremely steady ... Dear to the hearts of Aero fans, who appreciate his generous effort ... Blocks shots well, an art in jeopardy as more and more fragile defensemen enter pro ranks ... Born in Summerland, British Columbia, a town in the interior from where three other Aeros — Larry Lund, Frank Hughes and coach Bill Dineen — hail ... Has been a valuable source of information and instruction for Marty Howe, his defense partner on many occasions ... Definitely unsung ... An Aero original. |
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Excerpts from Pro Hockey, WHA 1976-77 (by Dan Proudfoot)
Larry Hale will never be an all-star defenseman, but his role is well defined with the Houston Aeros. "He's the best defensive player we've got," says assistant manager-coach Jack Stanfield, "he just never gets beat, never makes a mistake." Hale, 35, played in the NHL at Philadelphia after years with the Seattle Totems of the old, highly-respected Western Hockey League. But when he was drafted by the NHL expansion Atlanta Flames, he chose instead to move to Houston. Hale worked the blueline ... with youngsters Glen Irwin and Marty Howe, both of whom credit him with helping them learn their defensive skills. |
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